Perhaps the most impressive student-athlete on Notre Dame’s roster, Corey Robinson‘s sophomore campaign saw him earn first-team Academic All-American honors, a rare achievement for an underclassman. Now the goal is something perhaps more superficial—sync up his work on the field with his achievements off of it.
Robinson showed moments of greatness, playing a dominant game in Tallahassee that could’ve been greater had it not been ruined by a questionable yellow flag. And even though a broken thumb didn’t slow him down early in the season, Robinson’s production dwindled the second half of the year, with consistency still a question mark for the rising junior.
As an upperclassman, that needs to change. And as Will Fuller begins 2015 as a marked man, it’s up to Robinson and teammate Chris Brown to prove that opponents need to respect both sides of the field.
COREY ROBINSON
6'4.5", 215 lbs.
Junior, No. 88, WR
RECRUITING PROFILE
Notre Dame was the first to offer Robinson, a raw, gangly receiver from a small school in San Antonio. But by the time the recruiting cycle was over, Robinson had ascended to a four-star recruit with a handful of impressive offers to his name.
PLAYING CAREER
Freshman Season (2013): Played in all 13 games for the Irish, starting three. Caught nine passes for 157 yards and a touchdown, a 35-yard score against Air Force.
Sophomore Season (2014): Played in all 13 games, starting two. Caught 40 passes for 539 yards and five touchdowns, finishing second on the team in catches and touchdowns. First-team Academic All-American. Rockne Student-Athlete.
WHAT WE SAID LAST YEAR
Feeling pretty good about getting both the off-field and on-field success right.If there’s a prototype for the perfect football player for Notre Dame, Robinson seems pretty close. He’s a top-flight student, a PLS major (Program of Liberal Studies), one of the most demanding and intellectually stimulating majors the university has to offer. That matches up with the Renaissance Man reputation that’s already been hoisted on Robinson, a talented musician who seems to have a knack for just about everything. On the field, he’s got unique physical traits and comes from a family where it’s clear that the gene pool is pretty good, too.
I already expected a huge spike in Robinson’s production, a combination of the sophomore improving, the offense expanding, and a variety of weapons giving Robinson some juicy 1-on-1 matchups. And if DaVaris Daniels is suspended for a lengthy period, Robinson will be hoisted into the starting lineup, forced to play a bigger role on the outside with Chris Brown and Fuller.
The sky seems to be the limit for Robinson. There are still questions that need to be answered, mostly with how he beats tight, physical coverage. But if the Irish can utilize him properly, then Robinson should be a very, very productive player this season.
FUTURE POTENTIAL
If Robinson is going to be more than a productive college receiver, this is the season where you should see him take off. Last year there were some really solid moments (clutch 4th down conversions, the touchdowns against Florida State), but a late-season lull and some uncharacteristic drops (one that turned into a pick-six for Everett Golson) spoiled the performance and showed some limitations in Robinson’s ability to control his body, a necessity for the lanky receiver.
At this point, I’m not sure it’s realistic to think that Robinson is going to be quick enough off the line of scrimmage to be a dominant player. But situationally he can be a handful, and as a No. 2 (or No. 3 if Chris Brown stays in the starting lineup), Robinson has the potential to be a nightmare.
CRYSTAL BALL
Remember when we talked about the matchup problem Robinson could be in the red zone with his basketball height and leaping ability? Maybe Mike Sanford will be the guy who arrives and finally says, “Hey, let’s throw this kid some fades in the end zone.”
That’s probably oversimplifying how Robinson can run up his touchdown total, but the fact that the Irish will be really tough running the football—especially with a quarterback who is a threat to keep the football near the goal line—means he’ll draw plenty of one-on-one coverage. (Run the ball, throw a fade to Robinson or a quick screen to Fuller? That’s quite a menu for any quarterback.)
We learned the term “catch radius” when watching Robinson turn UND practice reports into Spiderman spottings. So after battling through a hand injury that had to make squeezing the football harder, it’ll be important to see Robinson return to his velcro ways.
But beyond that, finding the footballs to make sure Robinson has the ability to build on 40 catches and push towards 50 or 60, that’s the question. Because if the junior is going to emerge as a big-play threat, he’ll need to demand the football over C.J. Prosise, Brown, Amir Carlisle and already guaranteed touches for Fuller in a crowd of capable playmakers.
Robinson has an NBA body and hands that you can’t teach. If he’s able to balance that with a play-to-play consistency, he’s another wonderful option.
THE 2015 IRISH A-to-Z
Josh Adams, RB
Josh Barajas, OLB
Nicky Baratti, S
Alex Bars, OL
Asmar Bilal, OLB
Hunter Bivin, OL
Grant Blankenship, DE
Jonathan Bonner, DE
Miles Boykin, WR
Justin Brent, WR
Greg Bryant, RB
Devin Butler, CB
Jimmy Byrne, OL
Daniel Cage, DL
Amir Carlisle, RB
Nick Coleman, DB
Te’von Coney, LB
Shaun Crawford, DB
Scott Daly, LS
Sheldon Day, DL
Michael Deeb, LB
Micah Dew-Treadway, DL
Steve Elmer, RG
Matthias Farley, DB
Nicco Fertitta, DB
Tarean Folston, RB
Will Fuller, WR
Jarrett Grace, LB
Jalen Guyton, WR
Mark Harrell, OL
Jay Hayes, DL
Mike Heuerman, TE
Kolin Hill, DE
Tristen Hoge, C
Corey Holmes, WR
Chase Hounshell, TE
Torii Hunter, Jr. WR
Alizé Jones, TE
Jarron Jones, DL
DeShone Kizer, QB
Tyler Luatua, TE
Cole Luke, CB
Nick Martin, C
Greer Martini, LB
Jacob Matuska, DL
Mike McGlinchey, OT
Colin McGovern, OL
Peter Mokwuah, DL
John Montelus, OL
Nyles Morgan, LB
Sam Mustipher, OL
Quenton Nelson, OL
Tyler Newsome, P
Romeo Okwara, DE
James Onwualu, LB
C.J. Prosise, WR/RB
Doug Randolph, LB/DE
Max Redfield, S